Funding Fuels OSU Lab's Ability to Study Lake Erie

New funding from the state will help researchers better examine environmental problems in Lake Erie.

Ohio State’s Stone Laboratory plans to build a $1.9 million laboratory on Gibraltar Island near Put-In-Bay and use additional funds for cutting-edge new equipment.

The money comes from the Clean Lake 2020 law passed by state legislators in July.

Stone Lab director Christopher Winslow says the technology will be used to monitor the lake and study issues like harmful algal blooms. He says it’s not just Stone Lab researchers who will benefit from the new lab space.

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Christopher Winslow, director of Ohio State's Stone Lab, explains what to expect with the new lab spaces.

“It will also allow researchers, not just from OSU, from across the state, from across the region, to be able to utilize the facility for many other research questions," Winslow said. "Not many universities have access to the lake, and so the way we view it, we need to make it accessible to everybody. This shouldn’t just be an OSU asset.”

Winslow says the lab will likely be built in 2020, but new equipment and technology can be purchased as early as next spring.

Gov. John Kasich is fighting for his clean Lake Erie initiative that includes tougher regulations on Ohio’s No. 1 industry. As Kasich argues, his proposed rules on fertilizer is in everyone’s best interest.

Local officials are hoping Congress will help provide funding to clean up algae bloom in Lake Erie. Cleveland Water Alliance Director Bryan Stubbs testified before a committee Tuesday, asking for additional funding to resolve the issue of algal bloom. The rapid increase of harmful algal bloom is sweeping across the United States, including Ohio.Stubbs and others told a U.S.